Charmed 1. Chapter 1

Reunion

A/N: This is a short little sequel to my fic "Pamela Halliwell: Wiccan Outcast." You'd be best off reading that story first, because if you haven't, it'll be a little difficult to figure out what's going on here! This story is set two years after the close of the last one. I know the ages of everyone are a little inconsistent with the previous stories, but in trying to figure it all out, I just got extremely confused. So they're staying this way. It doesn't matter that much anyhow.

Ages:

Pam- 31

Allie- 12

Chris- 25

Stella & Andy- 16

The two parts in the first chapter are meant to be happening simultaneously. Songs used are Rascal Flatts' "I'm Movin' On" and Alanis Morissette's "Hand In My Pocket. The way I wrote out the lyrics got a little screwed up when I uploaded the story, so they might look a little weird in some places. Just bear with me :)

CHAPTER ONE

Mark stared at the red house in front of him. It looked much better now than it had the last time he'd been there. Sitting in his car, he contemplated going up and just apologizing for everything. Maybe if he'd stayed, Phoebe would still be alive. Maybe Wyatt would've died long ago, too, before he'd had a chance to take over everything. Throughout the years, Mark had felt like the dystopia gradually forming around him was all his fault. He'd made himself feel better through drinking, and although he knew what he was doing wasn't fair to his kids, he never stopped. Even now, when he had convinced himself that it was all in the past, he had a bottle of Jack Daniels next to his seat on the floor.

Mark shook his head. The people inside that house across the street probably hated him more than even he could imagine. It was too late to make up for his mistakes now. If only he'd told them what he knew…

He started up the red car and slowly pulled away.

_I've dealt with my ghosts and I've faced all my demons_

_Finally content with the past I regret_

_I've found you find strength in your moments of weakness_

_For once I'm at peace with myself_

_I've been burdened with blame_

_Trapped in the past for too long_

_I'm movin' on_

_I've lived in this place and I know all the faces_

_Each one is different, but they're always the same_

_They mean me no harm but it's time that I face it_

_They'll never allow me to change_

_But I never dreamed home would end up where I don't belong_

_I'm movin' on_

_I'm movin' on_

_At last I can see_

_Life has been patiently waiting for me_

_And I know_

_There's no guarantees but a night alone_

_There comes a time in everyone's life_

_When all you can see are the years passin' by_

_And I have made up my mind that those days are gone_

_I sold what I could_

_And packed what I couldn't_

_Stopped to fill up on my way out of town_

_I've loved like I should_

_But lived like I shouldn't_

_I had to loose everything to find out_

_Maybe forgiveness will find me somewhere down this road_

_I'm movin' on_

_I'm movin' on_

_I'm movin' on_

………………………………………..

Pam shuffled down the street. This was the first time that she'd ever really gotten a chance to look around at how the city had improved. Sure, it had been four years since Wyatt's reign ended, but two of those years had been spent using every moment to try to get people back on their feet. Mortals had to learn the truth about witches, the two had to coexist, witches needed to come out of exile, new jobs were needed, nearly the whole city (and other places) had to be cleaned up and rebuilt… it was an exhausting process. Luckily after that, Piper, Phoebe, Prue, and Paige had returned from the afterlife to take over, but Pam still had obligations. She couldn't just walk away from her former position- there was still a lot to do. This was the first time that she actually had a chance to relax. So much had changed from year to year.

_I'm broke but I'm happy  
I'm poor but I'm kind  
I'm short but I'm healthy, yeah _

I'm high but I'm grounded  
I'm sane but I'm overwhelmed  
I'm lost but I'm hopeful, baby

And what it all comes down to  
Is that everything's gonna be fine fine fine  
Cause I've got one hand in my pocket  
And the other one's giving a high five

After a two year "rule," the Halliwell sisters had returned to their respective places in the afterlife. Apparently, since they couldn't die, it was unfair for them to be in charge. At least that's how the public felt… a reign like that would've lasted forever. Political debates were crazy in this time… some people believed the country should return to the way it was before, an American Democracy, but others were pushing for other sorts of government… well, whatever happened, Pam was relieved that it was officially no longer her problem. A new ruler had been elected, and now all future decisions were up to him. For the first time, Pam would be able to have… (deep breath)… a normal life.

_I feel drunk but I'm sober  
I'm young and I'm underpaid  
I'm tired but I'm working, yeah _

I care but I'm restless  
I'm here but I'm really gone  
I'm wrong and I'm sorry, baby

And what it all comes down to  
Is that everything's gonna be quite alright  
Cause I've got one hand in my pocket  
And the other one is flicking a cigarette

Pam was approaching Prescott Street now. She looked at the house that Allie and the Reeses had moved to, and then across the street to the Manor. Pam hadn't been able to call ir home for so long. Although the Manor had been severely dilapidated when she and Jake had bought it, they'd managed to fix it up pretty well. Pam wasn't exactly sure what was going to happen next with anything, whether it be their relationship, careers, or anything else. She'd never finished college. Although the future worried her, she was also pretty content with everything. If she could survive six years on the streets, this should be easy. A red car passed her on the street as she approached the Manor and walked in.

_And what it all comes down to  
Is that I haven't got it all figured out just yet  
Cause I've got one hand in my pocket  
And the other one is giving a peace sign _

I'm free but I'm focused  
I'm green but I'm wise  
I'm hard but I'm friendly, baby

I'm sad but I'm laughing  
I'm brave but I'm chicken shit  
I'm sick but I'm pretty, baby

And what it all boils down to  
Is that no one's really got it figured out just yet  
But I've got one hand in my pocket  
And the other one is playing a piano

And what it all comes down to my friends, yeah  
Is that everything is just fine fine fine

_Cause I've got one hand in my pocket  
And the other one is hailing a taxi cab_

A/N: So, what did you think? An okay first chapter, right? Tell me about it! Please review. Oh, and thanks to Mediatorsk for reviewing a story I wrote that wasn't even for this show... you're so loyal lol. :) And I'm glad you liked the sequel to the prequel!


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Hey, I got two reviews for my first chapter! That's like, monumental for me! So thanks :)

dana-maru1: Hey, glad to see you back! And also glad that you still enjoy my series... I still enjoy your fic, too. :)

Mediatorsk: Sorry the website was being stupid for you... it did the same thing to me, too. I'm glad you enjoyed the first chapter. And it's okay if you can't review for a little while, I promise I won't panic lol.

CHAPTER TWO

She walked across the grassy fields, breathing in the fresh air. It was unusually mild for January, even in California, and the sun was shining. The scenery was almost enough to make her forget where she was. Almost. Slowly she walked over to the spot she'd already visited numerous times growing up. She used it to think through everything.

_Paige Joyce_, the headstone she'd knelt in front of read. Slowly Stella placed a yellow rose on top of the marble.

"Hey, mom," she whispered. "I know I haven't been here for a while, but things have been really hard… Andy lost his job a few months ago, and of course because I'm the smart one, Dad didn't want me to start working. We've been scrounging to get by… we even had to use money from the college savings once… but that's only half of it." Stella stopped temporarily as a tear fell down her cheek. "Dad's gone missing. We don't know what happened. One night, we all just had this big fight, and he was really drunk, so he probably overreacted and left… the car's gone too. But we don't want to go to the police or anything- they're just gonna put us somewhere until we turn 18. God, we're hoping he'll come back… we're really worried. It's been two weeks. And based on when he left, it's probably our fault."

Of course, Stella didn't expect her long-dead mother to actually advise her on what to do, but venting calmed her down. She and her brother had always had to be strong throughout their lives, but their father was always there. He might've been an alcoholic, but no one could ever deny that he cared about them, and did what he could to give them the best life possible with a menial job. Stella had been wearing the jeans she had on for the past three days. It was cheaper if they went to the Laundromat as little as possible.

Stella looked back at her mother's grave. She was only five when she'd lost her, and she had no memory of the woman. But all her father had ever said about his late wife was praise, so Stella and Andy looked up to her as well. Apparently she'd been a very strong person throughout her life, dedicated to what she did, and even more dedicated to her family. She'd been a social worker, and she loved to help people. Stella wished she could follow in her mother's footsteps, but everyone in the family knew that there was hardly enough around to get her into college.

Her cell phone rang. It had actually been one she'd found in the bus station a little while ago- there was no way her father would pay for a phone. "Hello?" she asked, answering it.

"Hey, Stella!" Came the shout from the other end.

Stella couldn't help but smile at her brother's antics. "Are you ever gonna stop doing that?" she asked.

"It's too fun," Andy replied. "Anyway, I got a job!"

"Really?"

"Yeah, down at Wal-Mart. And I'm pretty sure that as long as I work there, we'll get an employee discount!"

"Thank God," Stella said, breathing a sigh of relief. They were running low on funds, and there were bills to pay.

"What about you?"

"Huh?"

"Any success job hunting?"

"Uh… I'm not at the mall," Stella admitted.

"What?" Andy asked. "You know you can't goof off at a time like this!"

"I know, I know…" Although Stella was older by three minutes, Andy always had that big brother character about him.

Andy sighed on the other line. "Well, where are you?"

"Down at the cemetery. I'm at mom's grave."

"Oh."

"I miss her, y'know? I know it was like, eleven years ago…" her voice was starting to crack.

"Hey, it's okay," Andy comforted. "I'll get on a bus and meet you there. Sorry about yelling at you like that."

On TV, most twins, especially those of the opposite sex, were portrayed as hating each other and always fighting, but Stella and Andy looked out for each other. They had to.

A/N: This is about finished as I post the chapters, so unless my computer and the website do battle again, the updates should be pretty quick. Sorry I don't have titles for these chapters... I'm just really bad with titles! Anyway, please review:)


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Snow day! It means I have time to update :)

dana-maru1: you'll see...

CHAPTER THREE

Andy unlocked the door and stepped in, Stella close behind. Home sweet home. It was a very small house, with only two bedrooms, the tiniest bathroom you could ever imagine, and a kitchen and living room which were basically one. So it was pathetic… but it was the best they could do. Stella wondered what things were like before their mom died… if she was a social worker, then she must've had a pretty good salary… and their dad did, too, before he was fired for being drunk on the job. Stella wished they had pictures from back then- that way she might be able to see what their old house used to look like. It was probably big. She let her mind wander as to what her mother might've looked like as well, but she didn't have much time to think before she was hit by a projectile newspaper.

"Andy!" she grumbled, picking up the paper from where it had landed on the carpet. "What was that for?"

"Just a friendly reminder to search the classifieds," he replied.

"Right…" Stella mumbled, sitting down in her dad's armchair and opening the paper. Andy was lying on the couch next to her, watching some random show on the fuzzy old TV.

Just then, a sinister looking man appeared out of nowhere. Stella and Andy leapt to their feet. The man grinned and extended his hand. An energy ball appeared in it. Now, they panicked. As they started to run for an exit, the man threw it. As soon as it hit the door, the wood turned black. Stella screamed. Andy grabbed her by the hand and they ran into the only room with a lock- the bathroom.

"Why did we come in here?" Stella asked, paranoid. They both knew very well that a demon was attacking them, but they had no idea why. All they knew was that they'd never stand a chance. Stella screamed again as loud pounding sounds came from the other side of the door. The wood was cracking. They searched around for some sort of exit- there were no windows in this room. "Someone help us!" Stella shouted pointlessly. She doubted anyone would hear or care.

Suddenly, a swarm of blue lights filled the room, materializing into a young man with brown hair. Both Stella and Andy jumped.

"Who are you?" Andy asked. The door burst open, and the demon inched closer.

"Come with me, quick!" Before Stella or Andy could protest, there was a hand on each of their shoulders and blue lights clouded their vision.

……………………………………….

Pam aimlessly looked in the fridge. As she shut the door, a swarm of blue lights appeared in front of her.

"Chris, what're you-" she stopped as she saw the other two people with him. "-doing here?" she finished.

"How did we get here?" Andy asked. "Where are we?"

"Are these mortals?" Pam asked.

"I don't know. I heard their call, and when I orbed in, they were being attacked by a demon, so I orbed them out."

"_What_ did you do?" Stella asked warily. This was a term she'd never heard of before.

"I saved your _lives_, that's what!" Chris said, on the verge of loosing his temper.

"So if you could hear their call, they should be your charges…" Pam pondered. Perhaps these two were future Whitelighters. "Well, did you get the demon?"

"No," Chris replied. "I brought them over here because we might need two witches. This guy-"

"_Witches_?" Andy said. Out of all the things he could be involved with, the supernatural was the one he'd least expected- or wanted. "That's it, we're outta here…"

"If you leave, you're only gonna get attacked by the demon again," Pam persuaded.

They stopped. "A-And you can help us?" Stella asked.

"Yes," Pam replied. "Do you have any idea why he went after you?"

"Why? We don't even know where he came from!" Andy exclaimed. "One minute, everything was normal, and the next, he just- what's it called, 'shimmered'… then everything went crazy."

"Okay, well, do you remember what he looked like?" Luckily, Pam had been able to retrieve the Book of Shadows from Wyatt a few years ago.

"Like that!" Stella exclaimed, pointing over near the basement door. The same demon was standing there.

Pam rushed over and high-kicked him in the face to buy some time. "Jake!" she shouted. Unfortunately, she and Chris lacked offensive active powers.

He rushed in and launched an energy ball at the demon. It only stunned him for a second. "That's not gonna work, Destorr!" He pointed at Stella and Andy. "I will have revenge on them!" He shimmered out.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: ...I'm actually not really sure what to write up here this time. Maybe it's because I stayed up to watch the Olympics and now I'm super tired... ugh.

Mediatorsk: Ah, yes, the dreaded female curse. I've got it too lol. And great work so far on your first fic, btw:)

dana-maru1: Here you are... now's where I ask you the same question for your fic... "More soon PLEASE?"

CHAPTER FOUR

"Do you know what that was?" Pam asked Jake as soon as everyone had gathered themselves.

"I can't be positive… but I think it was a Nattrod."

"Okay...never heard of them before.I'll check the book in a minute," Pam decided.

"He said you couldn't stop him," Andy reminded warily. "How exactly are you gonna protect us?"

"Well, we might not be able to do it alone, but sometimes there's a spell we can read, or a potion we can brew that'll vanquish him," Chris explained.

"So, let me get this straight… you guys are witches, right? And a demon is after us?" Stella asked. She'd never seen a witch before- she'd only heard about them in the news.

"Yes," Pam replied. "Um… do you know if you are? Witches, I mean."

"What?" Andy asked. "Why would we be?"

"Well, that demon said he was seeking revenge on you, so you must've done something to anger him. Ordinarily, a mortal can't do much to piss off a demon," Chris said.

"Well, we've never seen him before, and we certainly don't read spells or anything," Stella reaffirmed.

"I'll check the book. There's gotta be something," Pam mumbled. "Jake, what exactly do you know about Nattrods?"

"Nothing really. I've just heard about them. Apparently, they're a pretty rare species. Only a few exist," he answered.

"Okay… hopefully the book will know more." She left to go get it..

"Where are we, anyway?" Andy asked.

"San Francisco," Chris replied. "Prescott Street, to be exact."

"Wow. You guys travel far with that teleportation thing you do."

"It's called orbing. Why, where are you from?"

"Oakland," Stella answered.

"Well, that's not that far," Chris commented.

"You'll have to excuse my brother. He hasn't looked at a map in… forever," Stella teased.

"Ha ha," Andy replied sarcastically.

"We used to live in San Francisco," Stella continued. "When we were real little. I don't even remember the place."

"Well, I don't think going for a sightseeing trip is exactly a good idea right now," Chris advised.

Pam re-emerged with the book. "Okay…" she said, setting it down on the counter. "Let's see what we can find." She only had to flip a few pages in the 'demons' section before she found the page she was looking for. "Here we are. Nattrods… _Now sparse in numbers, this demon used to have a thriving population up until the mid-1800s. The reason for their sharp decline is the work of one Stephen Joyce, a witch hunter who, although mortal, was able to significantly decrease the numbers of this deadly species. However, the details of how he went about achieving this are little-known. The Nattrods are considered deadly because until Joyce's amazing feat, there was no way to kill them aside from the Power Of Three spell, and seeing as the Charmed Ones were still a little over a hundred years away from existence, witches and mortals alike were helpless against them. Theoretically, Joyce used a potion against the Nattrods, although no one has any idea what such a potion could contain. No combination of any known ingredients would be able to take down a demon of the Nattrods' level. For now, his triumph will have to remain an enigma._" Pam just stared at the page. The write-up had only made things more confusing.

"Recognize anything?" Chris asked Stella and Andy.

"Well… I don't know if this has anything to with that, but Joyce is our last name," Stella informed.

Pam cocked her head, almost like a dog, upon hearing this. "Joyce…" she muttered. "Where have I heard that before…" She looked over at the two teenagers. "What are your names?"

"Um, I'm Stella, and this is Andy. We're twins," Stella explained.

Pam let the book fall out of her hands and onto the counter. She turned to Chris. "It's _them_!"


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Wow, this one's getting a lot of hits! And a new reviewer! Thanks to everyone!

Mediatorsk: You scared me for a second there when you said "i loved the ending." I thought maybe I was so tired when I posted it that I'd wrote "THE END" at the bottom and now everyone thought the story was over! I'm overreacting, as usual lol...

dana-maru1: I can relate to the mega-busy feeling. My Geometry teacher made me do a stencil this weekend. Tell me, what the hell doesa stencil have to do with Geometry?

erica: Thanks for your review! I hope you keep reading :)

CHAPTER FIVE

"Them? Who are _we_, exactly?" Andy asked, mystified at the witch's strange reaction.

"God, your dad really did do a good job of keeping you away from magic, didn't he?" Chris asked.

"What? What're you talking about?" Stella asked. The people in front of her seemed crazy.

"What do you know about your mother?" Pam asked.

"Not much," Stella replied. "She died when we were five… she was a social worker… her name was Paige."

"Do you know her last name? Her maiden name?" Pam asked.

"No," Andy replied. "Why is this important?"

"It's _Halliwell_."

Both of their eyes widened, and they simultaneously said, "What?"

"You mean that Paige, our mom, was the same Paige that… that was a Charmed One?" Stella asked.

"Yeah," Pam replied. "And she would be buried in the family crypt with her sisters if your father wasn't so insistent on placing her in _his_ family plot… God, that was a mess."

Andy looked at her peculiarly after she made that comment. "Did you… know him or something?"

"Know him? We're your cousins," Chris explained.

"_Cousins_? So, based on what you're saying, you two are Chris and Pam Halliwell?" Stella asked.

"In the flesh," Pam replied.

"You've gotta be lying," Andy replied defiantly. "If we're the children of a Charmed One, then we should be witches too. But we don't have powers."

"You did," Pam said. "Right up until your mom died. After that, your dad got so paranoid about something evil killing you that he made my mom, Phoebe Halliwell, bind your powers."

"So… we don't have them anymore?" Stella asked. She still wasn't sure whether or not to believe this, but if it was true, then it was a little unfair to find out that she _used _to have powers instead of finding out that she had them.

"Unfortunately. The spell was permanent," Pam explained. A thought then crossed her mind. "I always thought your dad was overreacting back when we went through all that… maybe he knew something about this, and he didn't want us to find out?"

"You think he's a relative of Stephen Joyce?" Chris asked.

"It would fit. Maybe that's why the Nattrods are after you two… they want revenge for what your great-something grandfather did to their species," Pam realized.

"Well, then that would be a little easier to deal with if we actually had powers to defend ourselves with," Andy murmured.

"I wonder…" Pam thought aloud. "One thing I've always been taught is that Halliwell magic is the strongest kind out there. Maybe… it'll be strong enough to give you guys your powers back." She began to flip the pages in the book.

"I dunno, Pam…" Chris started. He didn't want her to get her cousins' hopes up for nothing, since he figured that it probably wouldn't work.

"Give me your hand," she replied, cutting him off. "The more witches we have saying the spell, the more effective it'll be." Stella and Andy had taken their hands, too. "Okay, ready? We all have to say it together."

_Powers of the witches rise_

_Course unseen across the skies_

_Come to us who call you near_

_Come to us and settle here_

_Blood to blood, I summon thee_

_Blood to blood, return to me_

Chris and Pam then let go of Stella and Andy, who still held each other's hands. Miraculously, two bright balls of light came flying out of nowhere and went right into them.

"Does… does that mean it-" Andy stuttered, trying to find out where the strange glow had gone to.

"I think so," Pam replied. "We need a test."

"Well, since you guys are part whitelighter, you should be able to orb…" Chris began, "and there's one thing that makes you orb." He suddenly jumped at them, holding a knife he'd gotten from the kitchen counter. They both screamed and dissolved into bright blue lights, the reappeared a second or two later. "Fear," Chris finished, putting the knife back.

"So, did we just…?" Stella asked, a bit confused.

"Yep. You orbed," Pam verified. "It worked."

That meant that this really wasn't a lie after all. Stella and Andy really were witches, their mother really was a Charmed One, they had Halliwell blood, and there were invincible demons after them. It was things like this that made the bad outweigh the good. Both twins had an eerie realization that all their lives, they'd wondered what their mother looked like, and here her picture had been right on the front page of the newspapers they'd used to put under their coffee cups for years. It also meant that she had been killed by supernatural causes, not by cancer like their dad had always told them. They knew so little. It also made them fearful for their own lives… if she, one of the strongest witches alive with years of experience, could be killed by a demon, then they certainly could, too.

"So, what're we gonna do against these Nattrod things?" Andy asked.

"Let's focus on you guys controlling your powers first. It's most important that you can defend yourselves in case of an attack," Pam advised.

A/N: I know it's a bit of an abrupt ending, but just deal with it. :P


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: This one's a bit short... sorry. I'll update with the next chapter soon. :)

Mediatorsk: So I guess I'm funny when I'm neurotic, eh? lol. As for Nattrods, well, I came up with that the same way as I always do. Type some random keys on my keyboard, add some vowels, and change the letters around until it looks something remotely like a demon name. :)

CHAPTER SIX

Stella took after her mother. After learning a little bit about witchcraft and how different emotions trigger certain powers, she had quickly found out that she could move things telekinetically if she called for them. They would orb themselves to her, and according to Pam, this had been the same way that Paige's powers had worked. Andy on the other hand took after his Aunt Piper. It hadn't been long before Pam threw something at him and he inadvertently made it stop in mid-air.

All they had to work on now was control. Although it was obvious that a lot more practice would be needed for any beginner witch, Pam was impressed at how quickly they were learning. She was confident that as long as she, Chris, or Jake was there to help, her cousins were capable of surviving a demon attack.

"Okay, well now I think I should go up to the attic and see if there's any way to figure out how Stephen Joyce defeated these things… You guys just work on your powers," Pam instructed. "Feel free to look around the house or something… whatever you feel like. Jake, you have the most offensive active power. Stay down here with them."

And he did… for a few minutes. After that, Stella had led Andy into the kitchen whilst he was too wrapped up in sorting through the closet under the stairs.

"So do you really think dad knows something about all this?" Stella asked her brother. She took a book from the shelf.

"I dunno… everything's way too confusing today. What're you doing?"

"Maybe there's a phone number in here for dad or something," Stella suggested. She was leafing through the family address book. "Like, maybe he's at the house of a relative that we don't know about…"

Andy shrugged. "God knows he's already lied to us enough,"

"Andy, don't be mad at him… he was just trying to protect us."

"By lying to us about mom? By keeping all of this a secret? That's not fair."

"Well, you can't always get what you want," Stella quipped. "You like that song, right?" she added when there was no reaction from her brother.

"I'm more of a Beatles fan," he said.

Just then, the Nattrod demon shimmered in. As soon as the twins looked over, he thrust an energy ball straight at them. Andy held up his hands, and it froze.

"You're _witches_?" the demon asked. He sounded perplexed by this new finding, and a little bit annoyed as well.

"Hell yeah," Stella answered, trying to sound tough. She eyed the pot that was resting on the stove. "Pot!" she shouted, extending her hand towards it. It instantly turned into a mass of blue orbs, and she angled her hand so that it would turn and hit the Nattrod.

Unfortunately, she still hadn't quite gotten her aim down. It missed and instead bounced off the wall. The demon only grinned at the realization that they too had been unaware of their powers until recently. Stella and Andy tried to stay calm, reminding themselves that they still had options. It was then that the energy ball Andy had frozen started moving again. He and his sister ducked just in time to avoid its contact. Now, they were starting to panic. Andy tried to freeze the demon, but it didn't work. Remembering what Pam had said, he was either too far away or too powerful for the freezes to affect him.

"You're not getting out of this one," the Nattrod chuckled. "Your Great-Great-Great Grandfather did something to our people. Something we didn't like. So, now we're returning the favor…" an energy ball began to form in his hand.

Just then, the back door opened and in stepped a young girl. She looked to be about eleven or twelve, and instead of running and screaming at the sight of something scary like Stella and Andy would expect any preteen girl to do, she dropped the books she'd been carrying and immediately flung her arms up at the demon. A small explosion erupted on his chest. Although it seemed to have hurt him, it obviously wasn't enough to keep him away. But the girl kept trying. She never stopped from causing the little fiery explosions, and finally, the demon had had enough of constantly fighting them off and shimmered out.

Andy whistled at the girl's amazing power. He couldn't think of anything better to describe it.

Just then, Pam, Chris, and Jakerushed in. "What happened?" Pam asked. She looked over at the girl. "Allie, what're you doing over here?"


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Sorry... I meant to update sooner, I swear. My teacher has me doing this Olympics project thing... it's due on Monday, so I should have a lot more free time next week. :)

Mediatorsk: First you say the song from my Supernatural songfic related to your life, and now you have "You Can't Always Get What You Want" stuck in your head... well, if you didn't already like those songs, I guess you're getting into some good tastes in music! lol :P

rei248: Wow, you read all of my stories? I don't know what to say! (Except that I'm sorry they're so long! I can get kinda carried away...)

dana-maru1: Yep, Allie's back! More of her in this chapter :)

CHAPTER SEVEN

"Saving their butts, apparently," Allie replied to her sister's question. "A demon just attacked."

"Which brings me back to my first question…" Pam said as Jake walked in, "What happened and why weren't you here to protect them?"

"I just got distracted for one second, I swear…" Jake tried to think of an excuse.

"Mm-hm. Sure," Pam replied. She turned back to Allie. "You didn't vanquish him by any chance, did you?"

"No. I couldn't, even though I tried to blow him up like, ten times," Allie replied. "Whoever he is, he's strong. If there's a spell in the Book of Shadows, it's gonna take more than once witch to say it…"

"We know," Chris interjected. "That's what we've been working on."

"Working on? So he's attacked before?" That was when Allie really looked around and started to wonder who the two strangers were. They were looking at her as if trying to figure out the same thing. "Who-?"

"Allie, meet your cousins. Stella and Andy, meet Allie. My sister," Pam introduced.

They awkwardly waved. "What exactly is going on here?" Allie asked, still desperate to sort out all of the confusion.

…………………………………………………

So, once the entire situation had been explained to Allie, she joined Chris and Pam in trying to figure out a way to vanquish the Nattrod. Or rather, make that _Nattrods_. Another assault was launched, and this time, the demons didn't take any chances. There were _three_ that time, and now that they knew the house was full of witches, they didn't care who to go after anymore. Everyone was wary, as they figured that the enemy would be back soon, and probably with more forces. There had to be some way to stop them… but so far, they had found nothing, and a whole day had gone by.

In order to protect the still-new-to-their-powers Stella and Andy, Chris and Allie stayed in the Manor that night instead of going home. That many Halliwells had notbeen there in a long time. Stella and Andy lay awake in their temporary room, unable to sleep. They worried about the next demon attack coming during the night, when they would have absolutely no defense. Pam had assured them that her crystal security system would warn them all if a presence was in the house- "After all, your mother _was _the one who invented it," she'd persuaded- but they were still uneasy.

Andy continually tossed and turned. The mattress was uncomfortable, and his head was swimming with thoughts of the day's events. All of a sudden, he was a witch, his sister was a witch, and he had a whole family of witches. He'd found out that his dad had been keeping secrets from them their whole lives. It was all very confusing. Meanwhile, Stella lay awake wondering if the room they were in used to be her mother's. Sure, she wanted to be close to her, but that thought was kind of eerie…

Just then, Stella's cell phone rang. She and Andy jumped and sat up in bed when they heard the noise. Stella rushed over to answer it.

"Do you want to wake everyone up?" Andy whispered.

"_Sorry_…" Stella replied. "I don't know anyone who calls in the middle of the night, I swear." She opened the phone and pressed the talk button. "Hello?" Andy was waiting for it to be one of her asinine friends, calling to talk about some guy or some TV show. "_Dad_?" Stella asked in shock as she heard the voice on the other line. Andy instantly swung his head over to face his sister.

A/N: I know it sounds like I ripped off the ending of that Supernatural episode, but I swear I wrote that before I saw the ep. Please review:)


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Since I'm home sick today (24-hr flu epidemic spreading around the southern half of New Jersey), and since the last chapter was relatively short, here's the next one. Don't worry about me, I'll be better by tomorrow :)

CHAPTER EIGHT

Stella and Andy waited anxiously in the living room, looking out of the front window every five minutes or so. Another Nattrod attack- or battle, as it seemed more like, with their increasing numbers- had just occurred, and they were hoping none showed up when their father got there.

In his phone conversation the night before, Mark had apologized completely for leaving. He said that he had never felt so sorry in his life for abandoning his children, and that he did it because he'd felt overwhelmed by everything he'd done in the past. He'd tried to run away, but he worried about them too much, so he had to come back. Of course, when he drove to his house and found the state it was in, he panicked. Stella had informed him of their location, and he said he would start out once it got to be morning.

She and her brother were anxious to see him again- sure, they (Andy mostly) were a little angry about him binding their powers and lying about their mother, but they wanted to reconcile and get things back as normal as possible.

Stating that they were in San Francisco, at 1329 Prescott Street, naturally opened a whole new world of conversation. They talked for about an hour about powers and witchcraft and the current situation the family was facing. Upon hearing the story, their dad had paused for a second, and then answered, "I may be able to help you with that." They didn't know what kind of help they would be getting, but they were grateful for any at this point. More and more Nattrods kept coming. It was shaping up to be a war against them.

"He's here," Andy stated as he looked out the window. Their father's car had just pulled up. Stella instantly ran towards the door, her brother in tow. She opened it and hugged her father as he walked across the porch.

"Dad!" she exclaimed. "We were so worried!"

"I know, I know. I'm so sorry for everything…" Mark Joyce apologized profusely as they headed inside. "Hey, Andy," he said, giving his son a pat on the back.

"Hey, Dad," Andy replied, returning the gesture. His father looked around pensively at the house.

"What is it?" Stella asked.

"It's just… I haven't been here in a while," he mumbled. Recalling the events that had taken place all those years ago still gave him chills. Mark knew he would never be able to forget seeing his wife dead on the kitchen floor, her body caked with blood.

"So, what were you saying over the phone about being able to help us?" Andy asked.

"Right. Well-"

Just then, Pam walked down the stairs. As soon as her eyes met her long-lost uncle, she stopped. Her stare was as cold as death. "_You_…" she said viciously.

"Pam," Mark replied, trying to think of a way to answer her. He didn't get a chance to.

"What are you doing here?" she asked cruelly.

"I can help you…" Mark began.

"Oh, you want to help us?" Pam asked. "Now, after all the time you've spent screwing us over, you want to help us?" Mark was silent. "You abandoned your own kids two weeks ago, and now you just show up expecting total reconciliation?"

"But we do forgive him, Pam," Stella interjected. "He's apologized."

"I haven't heard anything," Pam stated. She folded her arms across her chest.

"Pam, if you'll just give me a moment, I'll explain everything…" Mark started.

"You've had your chance to come back here and explain things for quite a while now. It's too late. We don't need your help."

"Yes, you do! I know about Stephen Joyce, the demon hunter! I know what he used! It's strong enough to kill anything!"

Pam looked like she'd just been floored. "It kills _anything_? So let me get this straight, you watched our family _perish_ for months and didn't mention a word of this? Your wife could still be alive! Leo could still be alive! My mother could still be alive!"

"I know. Listen, that's been haunting me…"

"Usually when something haunts someone it doesn't take them eleven years to realize that they should apologize," Pam sniped. "Or were you too drunk to figure out where you went wrong? That's a great way to build a family, on lies and alcohol…"

"He gave us the best childhood he could!" Andy shouted. "And he's changed now! Can't you just accept that?"

Pam stared at them all. "No," she replied. "Get out."

"What?" Mark answered, dumbfounded at how she was reacting.

"_Get out_. I don't want you in my house."

"Pam…" Stella started.

"No, it's alright," Mark stopped her. "I'm not wanted here. I'll go."

"Dad…" Andy said. He stopped abruptly at that, not sure what to say afterwards.

"Bye, kids. Hopefully we'll see each other again soon." And with that, Mark left. Stella and Andy would've followed him right out if they weren't aware of the fact that without their Wiccan relatives, they wouldn't stand a chance against the demons that kept coming. They turned to face Pam, both wearing particularly angry expressions.

"Why did you do that?" Stella asked.

"Are you kidding? He's been hurting us for years. It's time he owes up to all that he's done," Pam replied defiantly.

"But he's our _father_!" Stella continued.

"He unfairly took away an entire half of who you are," Pam reminded. "I'm surprised you guys are standing by him."

"Because he's our dad!" Andy burst out. "Just because he's not perfect doesn't mean he doesn't care! And it certainly doesn't mean we're not gonna care about him! He's always tried to do what he thought would be best for us, and he _said_ he was sorry!"

"Why couldn't you just let him talk?" Stella asked. Her voice was shaky now. "You know our only chance of vanquishing the Nattrods is learning what he knows." She sniffled. Her andAndy walked past Pam and headed up the stairs. Pam stood there, wondering if maybe she had made the wrong decision. When anger got in the way, she could be so much like Prue sometimes… She related Stella and Andy's situation to her foster father, and that's when she really started to question herself. Of course, if he had done anything, she would forgive the man. But he had never done half the things Mark had done… he _did_ try to send her to a psychiatrist though… Pam headed back up to the attic, trying even harder to justify her temper.


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: Hey, everyone. Sorry for the wait. My mom's nuts about good grades, so me getting a C on a History test apparently merits computer restrictions. :( Anyway... the song used in this chapter is "Don't Give Up," a duet between Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush. This was actually one of the first parts of the story that I developed, and when I started, I planned on preaching to everyone reading this to go to iTunes and download the new version, a duet between Bono and Alicia Keys where the proceeds would go to the AIDS charity _Keep A Child Alive_. But now the song's not available anymore! How stupid is that? Let's help out some dying kids in Africa- no wait, we're tired of that. Sheesh. I got the song on like, the first day it came out- and I'm glad I did, it's good. Sorry for the rant. I should really get myself a blog...

Mediatorsk: No sweat about not reviewing the one chapter. It happens. ;) Yeah, I thought I was making Pam sound like Prue when I wrote it, too, so that's why I put that part in there. I hoped no one would percieve it as a copycat scene from "Thank You For Not Morphing"... And yes, I'm feeling much better now.

Punk Rock Miko2: Wow, thank you _so_ much for reviewing the stories in this series! That's so nice! Hope you continue to enjoy it.

CHAPTER NINE

"Dad, I swear, if we could control our orbing, we'd come get you right now…" Stella said into her cell phone.

"I know, honey," Mark replied from the other end. He was driving, although he had no idea where to. "I miss you guys. But Pam wants what she wants. We'll just have to see what happens. I'll talk to you later."

"We… we love you, Dad," Andy said into the phone. He hadn't said that in a while.

"I love you guys, too. Bye." Mark hung up the phone and stared at the road. He took another swig from the bottle on the passenger's seat. This was the ultimate failure. Of course, he had felt like a failure for the last decade or so, but now, he couldn't even be forgiven for what he'd done. He knew that it was all his fault. Why _did_ he have to be such a jerk back then? As far as he was concerned, he was still a jerk and that's why Pam was so nasty. He deserved it all. His only comfort now was that his kids still believed in him. They were the only thing keeping him from completely wasting the rest of his life away. He longingly thought back to the life he'd had with Paige, back when everything was fine and they were blithely unafraid of danger.

_In this proud land we grew up strong_

_We were wanted all along_

_I was taught to fight, taught to win_

_I never thought I could fail_

_No fight left, or so it seems_

_I am a man who dreams have all deserted_

_I've changed my face, changed my name_

_But no one wants you when you lose_

_Don't give up_

_Cause you have friends_

_Don't give up_

_You're not beaten yet_

_Don't give up_

_I know you can make it good_

Mark recalled how Paige's sister Piper had been killed, and after that how her son Wyatt had switched sides and basically took over everything in sight. Still, he hadn't done or said anything to his wife or her only remaining sister that could've prevented their murders. Why had he been so naïve?

_Though I saw it all around_

_Never thought I could be affected_

_Thought that we would be the last to go_

_It's so strange the way things turn_

He remembered all the times he'd driven back to the Manor, wanting to just walk in, apologize, and pick up where he'd left off. It had always seemed so easy, but today, he'd learned the truth. Pam's reaction almost made him wish the house was still as empty, dilapidated, and battle-scarred as it was during Wyatt's reign.

_Drove the night toward my home_

_The place where I was born, out on the lakeside_

_Daylight broke, I saw the smoke_

_The trees had burned down to the ground_

_Don't give up_

_You still have us_

_Don't give up_

_We don't need much of anything_

_Don't give up_

_Cause somewhere there's a place where we belong_

_Rest your head_

_You worry too much_

_It's gonna be alright_

_When times get rough_

_You can fall back on us_

_Don't give up_

_Please don't give up_

Mark also thought about his most recent screw-up, becoming so confused and grief-stricken that he'd actually ran away. How could he ever have left his underage kids to fend for themselves, and why did it take him over two weeks to realize that he should go back? In leaving, he'd tried to forget about all he'd done wrong in the past. Instead, he'd just made things worse. Everything had just been so overwhelming…

_Got to walk outta here_

_I can't take anymore_

_Gonna stand on that bridge_

_Keep my eyes down below_

_Whatever may come_

_Whatever may go_

_That river's flowing_

_That river's flowing_

_Don't give up_

_Cause you have friends_

_Don't give up_

_You're not the only one_

_Don't give up_

_There's no reason to be ashamed_

_Don't give up_

_We're proud of who you are_

_Don't give up_

_You know it's never been easy_

_Don't give up_

_Cause I believe there's a place where we belong_

Mark pulled into the parking lot of the next motel he saw. He would sleep on everything, and hopefully, things would be a bit clearer in the morning. He prayed that no matter what happened between him and the Halliwells, his children would be okay.

A/N: I hope this didn't sound too much like pointless dribble. I know it's not a very strong chapter...


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Since I'll be spending the remainder of the day studying History... ugh... and I don't know when I'll be able to update again, hang tight for the next chapter. And I promise I won't take anywhere near a month like I did that one time while writing This Can't Be Happening. :)

Mediatorsk: Yeah, I considered taking the part of the song with standing on the bridge out, but I was too lazy lol. Hope you find a new place! There's stuff available down here in Jersey :P

dana-maru1: So glad you didn't think it was dribble! That was my biggest fear with that chapter. Don't ya hate computer-related punishments?

Punk Rock Miko2: You were the first one to review this chapter. Thanks for the speedy response:)

CHAPTER TEN

Pam placed a handful of potion vials on the table in front of Allie.

"What're those for?"Stella asked.

"Well, so far, we've been waiting for the Nattrods to attack and then we fend them off as best we can. Maybe we can catch them off guard if we attack them instead," Pam said, explaining her theory.

"What other choice do we have, right?" Allie commented.

"Exactly," Pam muttered. She handed Stella a handful of potions as well. "There areour deadliest brews. We don't know if any will kill them, but it should definitely make them less able to fight back."

"Ready?" Chris asked them as he walked in. He too was armed with an assortment of vials. Everyone nodded. He took their hands and orbed Pam, Allie, Stella, Andy, and Jake into the lair of the Nattrods.

…………………………………………….

Mark didn't resist as the officer handcuffed him and led him into the backseat of his police car. They both knew he was drunkand he was going to be charged. Running away would just make things worse, especially if Mark didn't have his car to escape in. He'd crashed it right into the side of a building, happened to get out alive, and now he couldn't feel any more ashamed. Just a little while ago he'd said he wouldn't do anything worse to his family… and here he was going to jail. Mark figured that the stress of everything had caused him to drink as much as he had- he had probably figured, 'well, I'm already enough of a failure, so why not? Things can't get worse.' But now he saw that they could. What was wrong with him?

…………………………………………….

"How many of them are there? It's like we're fighting the entire race!" Pam commented through the chaos of flying potion vials and energy balls.

"We probably are," Jake commented in return. So far, they'd managed to evenly match the Nattrods, but just that. The potions didn't kill them. The mostthey did was disorient them for a second or two, andthey barely appeared weakened. Pam wished that there was some way her mother and aunts could cast the Power of Three spell from the afterlife… but she knew that they weren't allowed to affect the outcomes of anything major in the world- it would mess up destiny. Andy and Stella had already taken refuge behind a nearby rock, and their cousins were about a step away from joining them. An energy ball narrowly missed Chris, and another one grazed Allie's arm. She winced.

"There has _got_ to be an easier way to do this!" Pam said angrily.

"There _is_!" Andy shouted in reply, sticking her head up over the rock. "Our dad! He knows how!"

Pam didn't answer. She remained defiantly silent, determined to not ask for help from the man that she had been enemies with for so long.

"Face it, we need him!" Stella shouted.

Pam sighed. "Fine. Chris, get us out of here. These demons might've won the battle, but the war isn't over yet." They all orbed out, hoping that Mark Joyce would indeed know how to put an end to all this fighting.

…………………………………………….

"He's in _jail_?" Stella asked, dumbfounded when she heard what Chris had to say.

"I can see that," Pam muttered as she bandaged Allie's arm. Stella glared at her.

"Well, we have to bail him out," Andy said.

"Says who?" Pam asked. "I said we'd get help from him, I didn't say we'd spend our hard-earned money to get him out of something he did to himself!"

"But he's our father, Pam! If it was your dad, wouldn't you bail _him_ out?" Stella asked.

Pam stopped. She knew the answer was yes, and she knew that bailing Mark out was the right thing to do. But she just never was one to give up a grudge so quickly.

"C'mon, he's our only hope and you know it," Andy reminded.

"Well…" Pam started. She hated surrendering. "I guess we'd better go to the bank."

…………………………………………….

"Stella? Andy? What're you doing here?" Mark asked.

"We're bailing you out," Pam replied with difficulty.

Mark looked over at her, with an expression that looked like he was trying to figure out whether or not he was dreaming. "Really?"

"Really," Chris answered. "You're our only hope against the Nattrods."

"Thank you," Mark replied, with a look of pure gratuity.

"Alright, well they're not gonna wait for us. Let's go," Pam said, rushing through any poignant or tender moments. She just wanted to get this over with so Mark could go back to isolating his kids from the rest of the family as usual.


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: Technically, I'm supposed to be sleeping right now, but my mom forgot to turn off the DSL router! I feel like a spy on a secret mission... lol.

Punk Rock Miko2: Thanks for the positive feedback on the chapter. :P Yeah, I think if the decision was just up to Pam, she would've left him in jail, too. But like it was said, bailing Mark out was really the only logical choice. :)

CHAPTER ELEVEN

"Well, it's basically just your average potion of hand-grenade damage factors," Mark explained. "Except for the secret ingredient."

"Which is…?" Pam asked.

"I don't know what it's called. All I know is there's only one place in the world you can find it. Yemen."

"_Yemen?_" Allie exclaimed in disbelief.

"Well, that general area. Only place it grows," Mark explained.

"So what, we're gonna have to comb the desert and pick up every freaky thing we find and just guess which is the right one?" Chris asked.

"No. I know what it looks like," Mark replied.

"This is still gonna be pretty tedious…" Pam muttered, dreading it. She sighed, doubting they'd be able to scry for something like this if they had nothing related to it whatsover. "Alright everyone, let's visit the Middle East."

………………………………………

Once they'd re-appeared inside the Manor, the first thing everyone did was collapse onto the couches in exhaustion. Pam turned on the air conditioning. Chris emptied the sand from his shoes. Mark held the mysterious element, which they'd made sure to get a large chunk of.

"Okay, now what?" Stella asked, gasping for breath. It had taken considerable time to find this odd thing.

"We get some water!" Andy replied, heading for the kitchen.

"If you'll take me to where you keep all of your potion ingredients, I'll guide you through the whole thing," Mark explained.

Pam still didn't like being around her uncle, but she didn't really have a choice. "Follow me."

………………………………………

Smoke appeared as Pam tossed the last ingredient into the potion. "So… that's it?" she asked. "It's done?"

"Yep," Mark replied.

"So except for that one ingredient, it's just a simple vanquishing potion? Any witch could make it? And it's good against just about anything?"

Mark nodded. Pam started at him, half puzzled, half irate.

"I'm just wondering, do you come from a long line of drunkards, or is everyone in your family crazy?" she asked.

"Excuse me?"

"This has to be one of the most valuable brews in the world. Do you know how many people it could save? And you all choose to not tell anyone. Smart."

"Pam, please, let's not start this again. I'm very sorry for not telling you about it sooner."

"I said I'd bail you out, I never said anything about being nice," Pam sniped. "And all you are is sorry? You're nothing but a lousy drunk."

"Do you think I would be a lousy drunk if I didn't have guilt hanging over my head day after day? I feel terrible about it, Pam! That's why I couldn't bring myself to come back here before now, I was too ashamed at my own stupidity!"

"Don't forget selfishness," Pam interjected calmly, referring to when he'd snatched up Stella and Andy from the rest of the family for over a decade.

"Yeah, sure, that too. Blame me with whatever you want, Pam, I don't care. As long as I get to make up for what I've done with this," Mark said, gesturing towards the cauldron. He knew his niece would always be furious with him, so there was no use in trying to get her to change her mind.

"You realize that if it wasn't for them, I would've never let you in here," Pam reminded.

"I know," Mark replied. "They're good kids."

"Must be. Personally, I can't see why they'd stand by you after all you've done to hurt them." Sometimes Pam was telling herself to shut up on the inside, like now, but her anger was just too strong.

"Haven't you ever heard of love? They're my kids, Pam. We love each other. Love isn't perfect. But when we stick together, any situation can be a good one."

Pam stopped for a moment think about what she'd just been told. She tried to ignore it, telling herself not to listen to him of all people, but she could still hear his thoughts in her mind, further confirming what he'd said. He was right about love, and she knew it. Mark loved his kids, so he came back. Stella and Andy loved Mark, so they forgave him. Mark wanted so desperately to make peace with Pam and Chris because… he loved them, too. Sure, the family had been split apart for a while, but Halliwells were known for sticking together. If Pam wasn't in the way, that is. It now seemed to her more that ever that she was screwing everything up. Why did she have to be so hurtful, anyway? He'd apologized profusely. And everything _does_ happen for a reason, right? Who was she to know that things would've turned out better if they'd known about that potion years ago? The Elders said themselves that the deaths of the Charmed Ones were part of destiny. So now, Pam was realizing that it was her against the world. What a stupid corner to push yourself into.

Just then, one of the Nattrods shimmered in. Pam raced over to fill a vial with the newly-brewed potion. Meanwhile, the demon closed in on Mark. Slowly, he had backed up against the wall. Mark was helpless as the Nattrod formed an energy ball. Just when Mark thought he was about to die, Pam struck the demon with an impressive right hook. He backed off and turned his attention to her. That's when she threw the potion. He screamed in pain as the flames engulfed him. Finally, a victory.

"Thanks," Mark said.

Pam nodded. "C'mon. We've won the battle, but the war isn't over yet."


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: Wow... I didn't even realize it because I finished this a little while ago... but this is the last chapter. Hope you guys have liked the story :) As of now, I have no ideas for any more installments (which might be a good thing, considering how long this series has been), but who knows? I'm currently working on something for another show. Sorry people :( I'm also thinking of changing my penname to just "Patricia"... what do you think? The "L Bryans" part doesn't stand for anything anyway, and I've grown to think it's stupid. I came up with it at like, 3 am or something... Anyway, back to the story. The song used at the end is the Goo Goo Dolls' "Better Days"... everyone's probably heard it. Originally I was gonna use John Lennon's "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)", but it didn't fit as well.

Mediatorsk: I figured you didn't live near Jersey, (and if you did, you wouldn't want to live in the country's hell hole, lol) but wow, I've got readers all the way in the UK? Cool! I'm spending a month in England over the summer... can you imagine if we walk right past each other and have no idea? lol.

Punk Rock Miko2: Well, you'll see the whole thing about the love issue here. Hope you've enjoyed it all :)

CHAPTER TWELVE

All Pam had time to do was fill up the remaining potion vials and distribute them to Stella, Andy, Allie, Jake, and Chris before a hoard of Nattrods appeared in front of them. They must've known about the death of their comrade. As Mark, the only mortal, hid for his safety, everyone else threw potions. Ithelped of course,but more demonskept coming. For an endangered species, they sure didn't seem like it. It wasn't long before they started shimmering in behind everyone and knocking them out. The last person to fall was Pam, and when she did, there was one triumphant Nattrod left standing in the middle of the room.

Mark emerged before the demon could kill anyone. "I believe I'm the one you want," he said.

"You think you can stand up against me, mortal?" the Nattrod asked skeptically. "Once I kill you, I'm going to kill them all, anyway. They've caused far too much trouble to go unpunished. And there's nothing you can do about it. You're defenseless."

Mark revealed that he'd been hiding a potion vial behind his back. "Sure about that?" Before the Nattrod could escape, Mark threw it and killed him, ending the dangerous war forever.

…………………………………………

"My head feels better now," Stella said, handing the ice pack back to Pam. Almost all of them had some sort of bump or bruise.

"So, if you don't need us anymore, I guess we should go…" Mark mumbled.

"Oh, no," Pam interjected. "Not yet. There's tons for us to catch up on." Andy smiled. She'd finally learned how to forgive. "Plus, there's something I think you guys deserve to see."

They were led up to the attic, where five candles were placed on the rug.

"What're these for?" Stella asked.

"You'll see," Pam said. "_Hear these words, hear my cry, spirit from the other side. Come to me, I summon thee, cross now the Great Divide._"

Swarms of light began to appear in the area the crystals surrounded, and pretty soon, a woman was standing there. Stella and Andy instantly recognized her instantly as Paige Matthews, but it took a little while for them to realize that this was their mother.

"M-Mom?" Stella said finally.

Paige smiled, tears already forming in her eyes. "Stella," she answered, outstretching her arms and hugging the daughter she hadn't seen in so long. She looked over at her son. "Andy." She hugged him, too, and then looked at her husband. "Mark…"

"Paige… I'm so sorry," he apologized. The sight of his dead wife made him feel even more guilty of all he'd done to separate their children from the craft.

Paige walked up to him, wiping her eyes. "I forgive you," she said, instantly erasing all of the remorse in Mark's mind. She kissed him. Stella and Andy looked on fondly. They had never seen their father so happy.

"Come here, you guys," Mark said, motioning Stella and Andy to come over. The entire family shared a heartfelt reunion, and in that moment, Pam was positive that Mark had the right idea about love.

_And you ask me what I want this year  
And I try to make this kind and clear  
Just a chance that maybe we'll find better days  
Cause I don't need boxes wrapped in strings  
And desire and love and empty things  
Just a chance that maybe we'll find better days _

So take these words  
And sing out loud  
Cause everyone is forgiven now  
Cause tonight's the night the world begins again…

THE END

A/N: Alright, all you people who read and don't comment, review! This is the last chapter, after all. I'm not gonna get mad at anything you say, I promise :) Review even if you're one of my friends from school who's discovered my identity on this site and don't want me to know... (that's totally possible. I've found the profiles of two of my friends, and because I like to stay hidden, I only review their fics anonymously hehehe...)


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Charmed, Drama